Daytona Beach, FL (My Sportsbook) - While Action Express Racing pulled off a major upset in Sunday's Rolex 24 at Daytona, NASCAR regulars did not fare as well as in previous years in the 24-hour endurance race at Daytona International Speedway.
Joao Barbosa, Terry Borcheller, Ryan Dalziel and Mike Rockenfeller drove the No.9 Porsche Riley Daytona Prototype (DP) for the upstart team, which made its debut in a major auto racing event. Barbosa drove the car in the final leg and finished 50 seconds ahead of Chip Ganassi Racing's No.01 BMW Riley team.
"This is so much sweeter," said Barbosa, who previously won the 24-hour Daytona event in the Grand Touring (GT) class.
Action Express overcame Saturday's rainy conditions and then unusually cold temperatures on Sunday at Daytona. The team also encountered some minor mechanical issues. Ganassi's No.01 team led in the closing hours of the race, but driver Justin Wilson -- an IndyCar Series regular -- headed to the garage as a precaution after he heard a thumping noise in the car.
"We had a strange incident out of the bus stop chicane, and the car shook around with a rattle," Wilson said. "I thought it was a wheel bearing, and I had five seconds to decide what to do."
Scott Pruett, Max Papis and Memo Rojas shared driving duties with Wilson in the Ganassi car.
The No.95 Crown Royal/NPN Racing BMW Riley finished third. Christopher Bouchut, Ryan Hunter-Reay, Scott Tucker, Lucas Luhr and Richard Westbrook took turns driving the car.
Nationwide and Camping World Truck Series competitor Colin Braun finished the highest among those NASCAR drivers in the race. Braun and teammates Nic Jonsson, Tracy Krohn and Ricardo Zonta drove the No.75 Krohn Racing Ford Lola to a fourth-place finish.
Ganassi's other entry -- with Sprint Cup Series drivers Juan Pablo Montoya and Jamie McMurray, as well as IndyCar stars Dario Franchitti and Scott Dixon -- suffered engine failure after leading 139 laps in the early stages. The team retired from the race around midnight and settled for a 37th-place finish.
Four-time consecutive Sprint Cup champion Jimmie Johnson finished 21st. Johnson's Gainsco/Bob Stallings Racing Chevrolet Riley was running among the top-five, but experienced an oil pump issue that forced the team out of the event with four hours remaining. Jon Fogarty, Alex Gurney and Jimmy Vassar also drove the car.
Other notable NASCAR drivers participating in this year's race at Daytona included: AJ Allmendinger, Paul Menard, Bobby Labonte and Boris Said. Allmendinger's team finished seventh.
